Aqua Film Festival
The international film festival dedicated to water, held at the Casa del Cinema in Villa Borghese
About Aqua Film Festival
A festival that tells the story of water
The Aqua Film Festival is one of the most original film events on the Roman scene: an international festival built entirely around a single element: water. Rivers, seas, springs, glaciers, thermal baths, and aqueducts become the protagonists of films that explore their social, ecological, cultural, naturalistic, and artistic dimensions. Conceived and directed by Eleonora Vallone, the festival is organized by the Universi Aqua ETS association and is based in the city of Rome, in the Lazio region.
The Casa del Cinema, home of the festival
The historic venue for the event is the Casa del Cinema in Villa Borghese, housed in the Casina delle Rose, just a stone's throw from Via Veneto. This is where the awards ceremony—the most anticipated moment of the festival—is held, with prizes presented in the presence of directors, jurors, athletes, scientists, and marine experts. For years, screenings have also been available via free streaming on the MYmovies platform, a choice that has significantly expanded the festival's audience, making it accessible throughout Italy and abroad.
Sections and awards
The competition is open to feature films, documentaries, short films (maximum 25 minutes), and 'micro-shorts' (maximum 3 minutes), with no genre restrictions: from fiction to nature documentaries, from animation to music videos. Alongside the main prize, the jury awards a series of thematic recognitions that capture the cross-disciplinary spirit of the festival:
- Aqua & Environment Award — films dedicated to the protection of aquatic ecosystems
- Aqua & Tourism Award — water as a cultural and landscape heritage
- Aqua & Sport Award — aquatic disciplines and Paralympic sports
- Aqua & Thermal Baths Award — thermal locations and wellness
- Aqua & Music Award — music videos inspired by the sea and water
- Brother Sea Award — protection of the Mediterranean and the oceans
- Aqua & Students Award — the section reserved for schools and universities
In addition, two lifetime achievement and merit awards are presented: the Paladin of the Sea and the Knight of Water, statuettes handmade by the historic Calabrian ceramics workshop l'Anfora di Tropea.
Aqua & Students: the festival that enters schools
One of the most successful initiatives of the Aqua Film Festival is the parallel Aqua & Students competition, open to high school and university students from all over the world. Participants submit videos of up to three minutes, filmed with a smartphone, on the theme of water sustainability and the Mediterranean. Every year, the festival also organizes a smartphone filming workshop to guide students in the creation of their projects: a project that has already involved schools from Ostia to Fidenza, from Favignana to Gela.
Recognized commitment
Over the years, the festival has garnered support from prominent partners and patrons—Fondazione Roma as main partner, CONI, the Italian Paralympic Committee, the Italian Sailing Federation, the Italian Swimming Federation, the Department of Culture of Roma Capitale, the Roma Lazio Film Commission, the Ministry of Environment and Energy Security, and the Mediterranean university network UNIMED. This recognition confirms the festival's international vocation and its ability to foster dialogue between cinema, science, sport, and the environment.
Why attend
The Aqua Film Festival is not just a film showcase: it is an opportunity to look at the Mediterranean and its resources with new eyes. Its hybrid formula—free online screenings plus a gala evening in the greenery of Villa Borghese—makes it one of the most accessible and elegant events in the Roman June, perfect for those who love environmental documentaries and for those seeking a high-quality cultural event in the heart of the Capital.
Aqua Film Festival — edition 2026
11th edition: Rome and Venice, queens of water
The 2026 edition of the Aqua Film Festival focused on two cities that symbolize the liquid heritage of the Mediterranean, Rome and Venice, brought together under the theme 'Roma et Venetiae Reginae Aquarum – Water Unites Civilizations'. Four days of online screenings on MYmovies, from June 4 to 7, and a live closing evening at the Casa del Cinema in Villa Borghese on Saturday, June 6, with the presentation of awards before directors, jurors, and guests from the worlds of the sea and sport.
The jury, chaired by Pier Francesco Aiello, awarded the main prize to the documentary L'Agro Cerite e le sue acque by Domenico Parisse, recognized for the historical rigor with which it recounts the relationship between water, the territory, and its communities. Alongside the films in competition, the Aqua & Students section awarded works created with smartphones by Italian students, confirming the educational vocation of the festival.
Programme Aqua Film Festival 2026
How the 11th edition unfolded
- June 4-7, 2026 — free streaming screenings on MYmovies of feature films, documentaries, short films (max 25 minutes), and 'micro-shorts' (max 3 minutes) in competition, all on the theme of water.
- Saturday, June 6, 2026 — live awards ceremony at the Casa del Cinema in Villa Borghese, with the presentation of the main prize, thematic awards, and lifetime achievement awards.
- Out of competition — among the titles presented, the documentary on the sixty years of Porto Rotondo and the story of the Leo brothers, wheelchair users who participated in the New York Marathon.
- Aqua & Students — parallel competition for high school and university students, with videos of up to three minutes filmed with smartphones on the themes of water sustainability and the Mediterranean.
- Workshop — smartphone filming workshop reserved for Aqua Supporters (€20 contribution).
The 2026 Jury
Pier Francesco Aiello (president), Marco Amenta, Massimiliano Buzzanca, Giulia Elettra Gorietti, Riccardo Grandi, Rossella Izzo, Stefano Lorenzi, Enzo Monteleone, Monica Nappo, Arianna Ninchi, Giacomo Scarpelli, and Anna Testa.
Highlights Aqua Film Festival 2026
Awards presented in 2026
- Roma et Venetiae Reginae Aquarum Award (best film) — L'Agro Cerite e le sue acque by Domenico Parisse
- Brother Sea Award — The sea is my paradise by Antonio Palermo
- Sister Aqua Award, best short film — Nereide by Alessandro D'Ambrosi and Santa De Santis, with a trip to Favignana as the prize
- Sister Aqua Award, best 'micro-short' (section up to 3 minutes) — Axinos by Anna Maria Kakona
- Paladin of the Sea 2026 — explorer, writer, and marine documentarian Alberto Luca Recchi
- Knight of Water 2026 — Edward Von Freymann, creator of an aquatic exoskeleton for people with physical disabilities
- Aqua & Students Mentions — Liceo Artistico Paritario Ugo Foscolo of Ostia, Istituto Berenini of Fidenza, primary schools of Rome, the multi-grade class of the 'De Amicis' complex of I.C. Rallo in Favignana, and student Eugenio Tasconi from Gela
Prices Aqua Film Festival 2026
Practical information — Aqua Film Festival
Location
Casa del Cinema, Largo Marcello Mastroianni 1, Villa Borghese, 00197 Rome. The awards ceremony is held in the theater; competition screenings are available online on the MYmovies platform.
How to get there
Metro: Line A, stop Spagna (exit Villa Borghese) or Barberini, then a few minutes' walk. Bus: lines along Via Veneto and Porta Pinciana. Car: Villa Borghese parking (Viale del Galoppatoio), a short walk from the Casa del Cinema; the city center has a ZTL (restricted traffic zone), so public transport is recommended. Train: Roma Termini, then Metro A towards Battistini.
Tickets
Viewing the competition films on the MYmovies platform is free. Access to the awards ceremony at the Casa del Cinema is free until capacity is reached. The smartphone filming workshop requires a €20 contribution for Aqua Supporters.
Information
Official website: aquafilmfestival.org — e-mail: [email protected]. Competition entries are free and close in the spring (April 24 for the 2026 edition).
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Where does it take place — Aqua Film Festival
Casa del Cinema, Villa Borghese
Largo Marcello Mastroianni 1, 00197 Roma